Ken Orhn writes:
Occasionally, I wonder about the joys and frustrations of the professional lives led by others. But I had a recent experience that has convinced me to stay away from the political life at all cost. At a social event, I got into a conversation with someone who asked me what I thought of the CoV’s changes to the neighbourhood (Dunbar). I like them, I said, and thought there were two types: laneway houses and some highrises (the infamous senior’s 6-story residence).
Well, this person was against laneway houses for the following reasons:
No sewer capacity available for the increase
No water capacity . . .
No gas or electricity capacity . . .
No Internet capacity (offered an example of household problems with Telus)
No space for parking
Some residents want garages for their expensive cars (what?!?!?)
Chinese people don’t like laneway houses
The more I listened, the more I felt like a stranger in a strange land. I tried to make the argument about population growth and the choice between increased local density vs. suburban sprawl, commuting, bridges and freeways. These seemed like strange concepts to my conversation partner. I also think she was under the impression that the CoV was somehow forcing laneway houses onto unwilling homeowners.
We got onto rapid transit. She was against the Canada Line because her old auntie in White Rock now had to change from bus to Canada Line somewhere instead of riding bus all the way downtown. And why do all those people want to go to the airport anyway? I introduced the concept that CoV citizens travel hundreds of different journeys on the Canada Line by getting off and on at different stations. Another strange concept. Next objection: Why spend all that money to move a few students out to UBC?
Eventually I drifted away, but I do know that she will spread these opinions far and wide, just as she did with me. It is almost as depressing as watching our Prov Gov’t busily provisioning a declining motordom, and our Feds busily exporting climate change.
Then he went out for a walk, and says he feels much better.
I went for a quick pint with a climate denier this week. A bit wooly liberal of me (“maybe he’s just misunderstood; maybe he’s a sunspots expert”) and it was disappointing. A sad conspiracy theorist who was sure CO2 wasn’t a greenhouse gas (“how can plant food be harmful!?”) thought the UN wanted to control global energy supplies etc. Harmless, but as a friend nicely summarized, a conversation that’s all conclusions is pretty boring. I wanted some analysis and explanation.
And I will be there to vote in favour of any political party that moves us away from that resident’s willfully ignorant mindset.
Now Im depressed…
Go for a walk — or better yet, a bike ride ;>}
I just don’t talk to these people anymore. Why ‘piss into the wind’? Nor do I go on at length to the choir. The people with unformed opinions capable of listening on the other hand…
As for those objections to laneway housing. Well, they are patently false cover for to keep people out of ‘their’ neighbourhood, of course. Those expensive inner city homes use to have families of twelve in them fifty years ago. I wonder how the infrastructure handled it, he asks sarcastically.
That iS why we must continue to be leaders in our communities, both in action and thought.